My Cat keeps using the bath mat as a litter box

[D L and K's Mom]

GROSS!! My cat really kitten (is 10 months old) has been checked by the vet...nothing wrong. BACI (little kiss in Italian) has been using the bath mat (in the tub) and the rug outside the tub as a litter box. The litter box is clean, she knows where it is as she uses that too but she keeps pooping and peeing on the mat in the tub and the rug outside the tub. She does this in all our 4 bathrooms so it is not just one rug..it is 4!!! The vet suggested using vinegar to wash .I have washed both the mats and the rugs with special stuff from the pet store, vinegar etc. I even went out and bought new ones and she did it again!!! Anyone have any ideas? We keep the door closed as much as we can but DS (who is a special needs child) likes to open up the bathroom doors, go in and look in the mirror so he leaves the doors open. DH is ready to say Bye Bye to Baci. anyone have this problem???? Any ideas that we have not tried??? I would hate to have to say goodbye to my little black cutie but DH is getting so sick of seeing her little gifts in the tub!!

 

[MosMom]

Is BACI a siamese? My cat does the same thing and I basically just started hanging the mat over the side of the tub/shower until we need to use it. That solved the problem since she doesn't have a mat to go on. I also can't leave any laundry baskets out or she will go in those as well.

It doesn't matter how clean her litter is and she has two boxes just for her but she still does it. I think it is just how she is and probably will never change so we just adapt to avoid those problems.

 

[D L and K's Mom]

BACI is a little black kitten. We adopted her from the Animal Rescue League when she was tiny. I have put the rug over the tub until we use it but then she goes in the tub.......I think we will have to hang both over the tub and see what she does.

 

[bekkiz]

(This may sound rude--it's not intentional..so please don't take offence)

Have you considered limiting her access to these areas? If she's going on the bathroom mats, can you figure out a way to keep her out--like keeping the doors shut?

 

[KristaTX]

One of our cats was doing the same thing yours is in our bathroom and in our kitchen. By chance is the bottom of the mats/rugs you are talking about made of rubber or rubber-like stuff? I finally had to quit using rugs and mats with rubber bottoms. There must be something about that smell that makes some cats use those as a litter boxes .

Now in my bathrooms I use those tub mats that are kind of like towels - terry cloth with no rubber bottom. We also leave the door to the guest bathroom closed. In the kitchen I don't use rugs in front of the sink anymore, and one of my kitties still occasionally uses the floor right there where I once had a small rug. Habit, I suppose .

 

[MosMom]

(This may sound rude--it's not intentional..so please don't take offence)

Have you considered limiting her access to these areas? If she's going on the bathroom mats, can you figure out a way to keep her out--like keeping the doors shut?

The OP said this in her original post..."We keep the door closed as much as we can but DS (who is a special needs child) likes to open up the bathroom doors, go in and look in the mirror so he leaves the doors open."

 

[cherylp3]

Ask your vet for Feliway ( its kind of pricey)

You can also try putting catnip at the places the cat is going.

 

[kat3668]

What kind of litter do you use..... my cats can't stand the really fine grain litter and will only use large grains such as tidy cat or Fresh step.. maybe try the opposite of what you have and see if it makes a difference..
Good Luck!

 

[D L and K's Mom]

Yes we do use the rubber backed mats. I will try the plain kind. We do keep the doors shut but my son loves to open all the doors and look in the mirror. It is one thing he can do on his own so we allow and love that he is capable of smiling at himself in the mirror. We have used the same litter since we got her. It is tidy cat for multiple cats. We do have another cat but we know it is BACI as we have caught her in the act. Thanks for the suggestions. I will try them all!!!!

 

[DawnCt1]

I don't have a cat, but I was listening to Pet Talk last weekend with Warren Eckstein and someone called in with a cat that went potty in the wrong area. He said to put the cat's food where they are having accidents and make sure that there is pee or poop in the litter box.

 

[dolphinrescuegirl]

My cat used to do this as well. We took the rug away and started to really clean the box EVERY day and she quit.

 

[Chim Chiminy]

One of our cats is doing something similar.................not sure which is doing it though as we have yet to catch them in the act.
Someone is peeing/pooping right outside of the litter boxes. We keep a throw rug under each litter box and every day we find a present on one of them. And the pee is usually on the little rubber mat we place outside of the bigger box, it is one of those mats used to stop the litter from tracking.
Drives me crazy!!!

Wanted to ask if anyone else uses Feline Pine.
When it was just one cat we used Fresh Step, but after adding Tigerlily and then Tink my BIL said we should use Feline Pine.
Does it make a big difference for the cats??

 

[pinkgalYall]

Well my cat misses the litter box completely so we got him a bigger one and he still manages to miss.

 

[MsLeFever]

Wanted to ask if anyone else uses Feline Pine.
When it was just one cat we used Fresh Step, but after adding Tigerlily and then Tink my BIL said we should use Feline Pine.
Does it make a big difference for the cats??

I don't know about the cats but I can tell you that the PEOPLE who have to deal with the box will much prefer the feline pine - it really doesn't stink!

 

[KristaTX]

Yes we do use the rubber backed mats. I will try the plain kind.

You'll definitely have to throw out the rubber mats . I don't think you'll be able to completely get rid of the smell in them. If the kitty still smells a hint of the urine on them, it might pee anyway even if you wash them and the area really well.

So do your best to completely get rid of the odor in the area. Once you get rid of the mats, clean the area thoroughly with water and then spray the area with an enzymatic pet odor controller (e.g. Nature's Miracle). Do this a few times over a period of days and just leave it there to dry on it's own after you spray it. Supposedly the enzymes work over a period of time to break down the urine.

If the kitty may have sprayed the fabric shower curtain when peeing on the rug (mine seemed to be "marking" the shower curtain), wash the shower curtain really well, or just take it down for a while to see if the new rubberless rug thing works out. I actually finally just got a new shower curtain.

I've also done the trick with keeping a bowl of cat food where they have peed, like on the floor right by the kitchen sink. It seems to be a pretty good deterrent.

 

[Daxx]

This might be a stretch ... and I'm no expert ... but did Baci have a mat like that in her kennel at the animal shelter? If so, she might have used it as a litterbox at the shelter and automatically thinks of any type of mat like that as one.

Anyway, I like the idea that the one poster suggested -- putting the mat on the side of the tub when you're not using it! Maybe that'll put an end to Baci doing her business where she shouldn't be!?

Good luck to you!

 

[FireflyfromMI]

My cat was peeing on our rugs in the bathroom too. I took her to the vet, nothing wrong, it was pretty frustrating. Finally, I changed her litter and just took the rugs away. We started using towels for the floor and just putting them in the laundry after our showers. We left the rugs off for a while, months, and were able to finally replace them with no problems. I really think my cat didn't like her litter in the box and that was most of the problem.

Good luck, it's no fun!
Lisa

 

[mommiepoppins]

ya know my cat did that to. I threw out the rug and no problems

 

[MouseJunkie]

okay, here's one for you all. How do you get a cat to stop peeing on your pillows and your comforter? I'm just a little more than over this...

 

[D L and K's Mom]

I went out and got 4 new mats and 4 new rugs. There are now strict rules about hanging them both over the tub when you are done!!! The new rugs do not have rubber backing I put that rug tread stuff under them. I told DD if the cat pees or poops on these rugs I will have a lovely, furry ,new cat skin bath rug!!!! Like a bear skin only smaller!!!!!